We furnish herein the UFBU Circular No.4 on the outcome of the conciliation meeting held at Mumbai yesterday and the decision to defer our proposed strike on 30th and 31st January, 2023.
We congratulate all our unions and members for their enthusiastic participation in the agitational programmes and whole-hearted preparations for making the strike a total success. This alone paved the way for the positive outcome in the discussions.
UFBU Circular dt. 27-1-2023:
Arising out of the outcome during the conciliation meeting Our call for strike on 30th & 31st January deferred
Further to the Strike Notice served by us on the IBA as per the decision of our UFBU meeting held in Mumbai on 12-01-2023, as per the advice of Chief Labour Commissioner, the Dy. CLC, Mumbai had convened a conciliation meeting on 24- 01-2023. In this meeting, IBA did not come out with any concrete suggestion to resolve our issues and demands. Hence, we had informed the IBA that UFBU
will go ahead with the strike action.
The Dy. CLC advised both the parties to discuss the issues amongst ourselves and try to reach conclusions so that strike may be avoided. However, this did not happen. Hence, as decided on the 24th January, another round of conciliation meeting was held today the 27th January, 2023 in his office in Mumbai.
During the discussions, we made it clear that unless there is some perceptible forward movement on the issues, it will not be possible for the UFBU to defer the strike or reconsider the decision to go on strike.
After prolonged discussions, the following outcome was arrived at between IBA and UFBU.
- IBA agreed that bipartite discussions will be held on 31-1-2023 to discuss the issues raised by us in the Strike Notice.
- Such meetings will be held periodically to avoid undue delay.
- On common demands viz. introduction of 5 Day Work Week , updation of pension and switch-over from NPS to old pension scheme, common meeting will be held with workmen unions and officers’ associations.
- On other residual issues, separate meeting will be held with workmen unions and officers’ associations respectively.
- On 5 Day work week, IBA indicated that the suggestion for extra working hours by 30 minutes as proposed by UFBU needs to be further discussed with UFBU before they can consider and proceed in the matter. After discussion, it was agreed that the mutually worked out modality/extra working hours will be processed within a month after taking the views of other stakeholders.
- The issues which are pending for clarification will be attended to within a month.
- Regarding our Charter of Demands for wage revision, IBA informed that Banks have since received the communication from the Dept. of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance to initiate the process for negotiations for the wage revision due from 1-11-2022. IBA further informed letters have been sent to all Banks from IBA seeking their mandate and initiate the process of negotiations.
- IBA agreed that the residual issues would be discussed and resolved in a time-bound manner and implemented expeditiously.
- Regarding our demand for adequate recruitments in Banks, IBA informed that the same has to be discussed and decided in each Bank-level looking to the requirements in each Bank. We shall pursue the matter further.
Taking into account the above developments and outcome of the discussions, it has been decided to defer our agitational programmes and strike action on 30th and 31st January, 2023.
Thus, the negotiations on the issues raised by us in the strike notice will commence on the 31st January, 2023.
Further, it is important and significant to note that as demanded in our strike notice, the Government has advised the Banks to ‘initiate the process of negotiations for next wage revision of the employees due from 1-11-2022’ and IBA has already written to all the Banks seeking their mandate.
Comrades, your unity and preparations for the implementation of the agitational programmes and strike action have paved the way for the above developments. We congratulate all our unions and members for the same.
Further developments and outcome of the discussions with the IBA in the ensuing meeting will be informed to all of you in due course.
With Greetings
Yours Comradely,
C.H. VENKATACHALAM GENERAL SECRETARY
